A Letter to the New York Post

I was all over my mock outrage over some of the dumb dumbs in the Whovian community when I had the displeasure of reading this article about the upcoming Syfy show Heroes of Cosplay courtesy of a reviewer at the New York post:

"Click the headline to read this garbage."

If the headline isn't proof enough, Ms. Linda Stasi is a terrible writer. She's also a terrible reviewer as that entire article is less about Heroes of Cosplay and more about how she thinks cosplay is a stupid, stupid thing. She tries, and fails, to do it in a subtle way but the disdain bleeds through in every single word. So, I have decided to do something I rarely do. I am going to write a letter! I thought I'd hash it out here and see what you think.

To Mr. Mike Shain:

It is very rare that I feel insulted to the point that I feel compelled to speak about a matter but today I am very deeply offended by the poorly-written article "Syfy looks at world of make-believe reality in 'Heroes of Cosplay'." I am cosplayer and a writer myself and I was taken aback by the unabashed disdain that dripped with every word written by Ms. Stasi. I understand that she is a reviewer and reviews are written purely based on the opinions of the writer; however, what Ms. Stasi wrote was not a review of Heroes of Cosplay. What she wrote was a passive aggressive article on how she finds the art of cosplay itself to be a ridiculous affair. I have never seen a review NOT review the show that the article is supposed to be written about. Nowhere does the article indicate the content of the show, the format of the show, or even the time that the show airs. You have to give the article more than once over to see the premier date of the show stealthily packed away beneath Ms. Stasi's photograph.

No, instead of being treated with an insight on what to expect from Syfy's newest television show, we are treated with such barbs as, "I'm so confused--or maybe they are," and "The weird thing, (well, all of it is weird), is that these folks really want to the fictional characters they portray." She rudely paints a picture of cosplayers as delusional lunatics who spend all of our money on costumes with no regard to anything else. I can assure Ms. Stasi that we are all quite well aware of the difference between reality and fantasy. I wake up every morning wanting to be Alexis Partee (and I still am). I know I am not Storm from X-Men even though I have cosplayed her on several occasions. Is cosplay expensive? Yes it can be, but like people who collect guns or buy beat up classic cars to restore them, we plan for the finances we need to set aside for our hobbies. Individuals like Ms. Yaya Han have turned their hobby into a business. She makes money doing something that she enjoys. She has the kind of job satisfaction we all wish to achieve.

We are cosplayers and maybe it is a hobby that Ms. Stasi or others may not understand but we are still people and we should be treated and written about with some level of decorum and respect. Ms. Stasi failed in both regards. I sincerely hope you take this into consideration before you decide to allow anyone who writes under the New York Post banner to post something like this again: "Human decency doesn't mean you have to like what other people do; it only requires you to respect their right to do so."

With Regards,

Alexis Partee

Not bad, eh?